The first leg (2,366 miles) of my 8,000 mile drive to the Pacific and back this summer

lEAVING THE END OF mAY

Prepping our trusty (hopefully) 2003 Roadtrek camper van for its first big journey. Catheryn flies to Denver, then we head west through Nevada/Utah deserts. Stop in San Francisco/Petaluma to visit friends and Evan, and pick-up Philip, who’s flying in from Portland, Maine.

Leisurely drive up the California Coast to spend a few days in Redwood National Park, then back to SF.

Catheryn and Philip fly east, but I drive back the northern route through Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, the Dakotas, then down through Baltimore to visit old friends– then home to Davidson, NC.

The first leg of the trip West– Davidson to Denver, about 7 days mostly off-Interstate.

Will shoot vast quantity of stills and video, and blog each night for Atlas Obscura— mostly from State and National Park lands. The van has a kitchenette, so will buy/cook food from farmer’s markets and groceries– with some exceptions. Seeking quirky museums, ghost towns, old theaters, and all manner of roadside curiosities, personalities, and neglected cultures